Cellular networks typically require that the RF spectrum over which they operate not contain undesired RF transmissions, i.e., RF interference. RF interference in wireless networks degrades the operation of those networks. In particular, RF interference can cause the cell phones to drop calls, use undesirably high RF power, use excess network capacity, and generally cause an undesirable user experience. Thus, sources of interference need to be identified, tracked and eliminated to protect the operation of the network.
Cellular systems generally contain certain features to measure RF noise power so that the network can adjust to the noise, to the extent possible. The measurements are typically logged into a network management system, which can be used to generate reports that can be used by the network management team to identify which sites are most interfered. Thus, such interference identifying features may identify interference that is occurring to individual cells, but do not include features to assist in the global management of interference. Conventional reporting systems report the noise standard of one interfered cell at a time, and can be used to provide an overall report of worst interfered cells. This is the minimum necessary to dispatch crews to find and fix the interference. This type of system is limited in several abilities including, for example, such a system does not provide: a means to classify specific types of repeating interferers, a means to track interference levels over the entire network, a way to prioritize single interference sources that impact large geographical regions, a way to see the impact of network configuration changes to interference levels across the network, or a simple means to generate interference complaint documentation.